MG261 Business Law II

for U1T 2007

Mission Statement: The mission of Park University, an entrepreneurial institution of learning, is to provide access to academic excellence, which will prepare learners to think critically, communicate effectively and engage in lifelong learning while serving a global community.

Vision Statement: Park University will be a renowned international leader in providing innovative educational opportunities for learners within the global society.

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Course Description: A continuation of the study of contracts, agency, employment, and negotiable instruments; comparison of social responsibility and legal aspects of selected issues. Prerequisite: MG 260 3:0:3

Educational Philosophy: The facilitator’s educational philosophy is one of interactiveness via the internet based on lectures, readings, quizzes, written asyncronous discussion (dialogue), examinations, websites and writings. The facilitator will engage learners each week in what is referred to as disputatious learning to encourage the exploration of ideas, issues and contradictions.

Learning Outcomes:Core Learning Outcomes

Describe the relationship between agent and principal

Distinguish between the rights and liabilities of business owners, whether partners, members or shareholders.

All ParkUniversity courses must include a core assessment that measures the course's Core Learning Outcomes. The purpose of this assessment is to determine if expectations have been met concerning mastery of learning outcomes across all instructional modalities.

For this course, the core assessment is a Comprehensive Final Examination to be administered in all sections of MG 261. This exam is worth at least 20 percent of the student's final grade and will test students' mastery of the Core Learning Outcomes (as listed on this syllabus) through definitions, essay, and/or multiple choice questions.

This core assessment is a CLOSED BOOK, CLOSED NOTES examination that must be administered and proctored in the classroom and may not be given as a take-home examination. Students should not have access to the exam or its questions before it is administered. The duration of the exam can be no longer than two hours.

No computers, or materials other than a writing instrument and a calculator without text functions and communication may be used for the exam; this applies to all students, regardless of whether the exam is for on-line or face-to-face students. Completion of the exam is strictly individual; students may not work in groups to complete the exam.

The Comprehensive Final Examination for online courses must be passed with a grade of at least 60% in order to pass the course regardless of the student’s overall average in the course.

Class Assessment: Weekly asyncronous written discussion with peer reviews, case studies, an assigned written research project on a business law related topic for (a.k.a. term paper), testing

Grading:

·My goal is to give you prompt, clear, and useful feedback to help you learn about business law. Each student is responsible for:

Completing Weekly Reading Assignments.

Participating in weekly on-line conference discussion topics.

Completing weekly case study assignments.

Completing the Mid-Term Exam.

Completing a Substantial Writing Assignment, Referred to as a Paper.

Completing a course evaluation in Week Eight of this class.

Locating a suitable Proctor with e-mail capabilities and Completing a Proctored Final Examination.

Please note when assignments are due.

Assignments

% ofGrade

Week Due

Class Participation (45 pts)

15%

Continually

Case Studies (30 pts)

10%

Continually

Mid-Term Examination (75 pgs)

25%

Week4

Paper (75 pts)

25%

Week6

Proctored Final Examination (75 pts)

25%

Week8

Total 100% (300 pts)

A message from the Park Management Department: "The comprehensive final is not a take-home tests." "The comprehensive final is a closed book and closed notes exam.""For all online courses, the student must pass the final exam with 60% or better to pass the course."

Please read the Grading Rubric for each assignment located below under additional information.

Submission of Late Work: When an assignment is due at 12:00, 12:01 is late. Generally, late work will receive 70% for the first day, 50% for the second day late, and 0 after that. Extensions are available for very extenuating circumstances (If you are hospitalized or are deploying to Iraq and will not be near a computer for the entire week). Please see the grading rubrics for assignment-specific late policies.

Proctored final examination

A final proctored examination will be taken in a proctored testing environment during the 8th week at one of the ParkUniversity sites around the country or at an alternative location. For proctored examinations, photo identification is required at the time of the test. Guidelines for selecting an acceptable proctor can be found on the Park University Website.

Other Information on proctored exams:

It will be the responsibility of the student to arrange for a proctor, by the 6th week of the term, who is accepted and approved by the course instructor.

Approval of proctors is the discretion of the Online instructor.

A proctor request form will be made available to you during the first week of class so that you can send your requested proctor to your instructor for approval.

Failure to take a final proctored exam (or submit your final project for some online graduate courses) will result in an automatic "F" grade.

All final exams will be comprehensive and will be closed book and closed notes. If calculators are allowed, they will not be multifunctional electronic devices that include features such as: phones, cameras, instant messaging, pagers, and so forth. Electronic Computers will not be allowed on final exams unless an exception is made by the Associate Dean.

The Proctored final exam for online courses must be passed with a grade of 60% or higher in order to pass the course regardless of the overall average. The grade for students who pass the proctored final will be based on the overall average of homework and tests taken during the course. The proctored final exam must address only material which the student has been taught in class.

Late Submission of Course Materials:

Mid-Term:You must contact me to open the Mid-Term for you if you are late as it will close at midnight in the Mountain Time Zone.What is late?12:01 in the Mountain Time Zone on Sunday night of week 4 is considered too late to take the exam.You can only take the Mid-Term late with my permission.Without an excuse that I approve of (hospitalization, for example), you will receive no higher than a C if you take it 1 day late and no higher than 50% if you take it 2 days late.You cannot take the Mid-Term late after Tuesday of Week 5 unless you have an excuse.

Final Exam:You can’t take the Final Exam late without instructor permission. I rarely give permission to take it late. However, hospitalization or deployment to Iraq during exam week are excellent reasons to take the final late. Taking the final late could result in a grade of incomplete for the class. IF YOU DO NOT TAKE THE FINAL, YOU FAIL THE COURSE according to Park policy even if you have a D going into the final.

Paper:If work is due at midnight, then 12:01 is late.Late work will receive no higher than a C for 1 day late, no higher than 50% for 2 days late, and a 0 for anything after 2days.

Discussion and Case Studies:If work is due at midnight, then 12:01 is late.After 12:00, late work will receive no higher than a C.I will grade it Monday morning.After I grade it, no late work will be graded.

Note: When an assignment is due at 12:00, 12:01 is late. Extensions are available for very extenuating circumstances. (If you are hospitalized or are deploying to Iraq and will not be near a computer for the entire week).

Classroom Rules of Conduct:

Students are expected to complete 5 hours per week of conferencing or other appropriate online activities, including sending/receiving E-mail and navigating and conducting research overthe World Wide Web.

Students should keep copies of all coursework submitted as an electronic file (E-mail) until the end of the term.

Students will normally submit assignments and papers as RTF (Rich Text Format) or Word documents via the dropbox as attachments. WordPerfect files cannot be accepted as attachments unless saved as RTF. Of course, students can copy assignments from word processing and paste them into e-mail if thedropbox is not working properly.

Please post questions that others might have in the Office. If you have a question that is personal in nature, you are welcome to email me anytime. That's what I'm here for. I will get back to you in 24-48 hours (not on Sunday, however).

Any information I provide in this class is for educational use only and is not intended to be legal advice. It does not create an attorney-client relationship. Also, youshould not rely on anything you read on the Internet (includinganything from this class) as a substitute for sound legal advice. You should go to an attorney in your state when you have legal problems.

Students are responsible for clicking on the link below and thoroughly reading each Online course policy. If you have questions about any of these policies, please contact your instructor for clarification.Online CoursePolicies

Class Activities: Introduction to online computer conference learning. Introduction & discussion of syllabus/assignment schedule. We will discuss agency law, the duties an agent owes to principal, the duties a principal owes to an agent, and express, implied, and apparent authority as they relate to third parties and principal liability for an agent's actions. We will also discuss how to brief case law.

Locate a Proctor for your Proctored Final Examination. Each student will take the Proctored Final Examination from an approved proctor who will send the exam back to the instructor via e-mail or fax. See above "Grading Policy" for more information about the proctored final examination.

Week 2: Introduction to the Forms of Business

Readings: Study Chapters 37, 38, and 41.

Class Activities: We will discuss the forms of business, the formation of a partnership, the duties of a partner to a partnership and to the other partners, and the formation of a corporation.

Locate a Proctor for your Proctored Final Examination.

Paper Topic Due (posted in class) by the end of Week 2.

Week 3: The Management of Corporations

Readings: Study Chapters 42-44.

Class Activities: We will discuss the organization and financial structure of corporations, the management of corporations including the duties of the board of directors and the officers, and the rights and liabilities of shareholders.

Week 4: Secured Transactions and Bankruptcy

Readings: Study Chapters 28-30.

Class Activities: We will discuss the difference between secured and unsecured transactions, the relationship between secured transactions and bankruptcy, and the types of bankruptcies.

Mid-Term Exam: The Mid-Term exam will be this week. See the Grading Rubric for more information.

Week 5: Employment Law and Environmental Law

Readings: Study Chapters 51 and 52.

Class Activities: We will discuss employment law and environmental law including the responsibilities of business owners to follow the various laws and consequences if the laws are not observed.

Week 6: Negotiable Instruments

Readings: Chapters 31, 32 (pages 791-797), and 33.

Class Activities: We will discuss negotiable instruments, the types of indorsements, and the liabilities of parties.

Paper Due (in the dropbox as an attachment) by the end of Week 6. See the Grading Rubric under Grading Policy for specifics.

Week 7: Consumer Protection Law and the Legal and Professional Responsibilities of Auditors, Consultants, and Securities Professionals

·Readings: Chapters 46 and 48.

·Class Activities: We will discuss the consumer protection acts and the legal and professional responsibilities of auditors, consultants, and securities professionals.

Week 8: Review and Proctored Final Examination

Readings: Study already assigned chapters. Review lectures.

Class Activities: We will review agency law, the forms of business, the formation of a partnership, the duties of a partner, the formation of a corporation, the organization and financial structure of corporations, the management of corporations, the rights and liabilities of shareholders, secured transactions, bankruptcy, employment law, environmental law, negotiable instruments, the consumer protection laws, and the legal and professional responsibilities of auditors, consultants, and securities professionals.

Proctored Final Examination:Each student will take the Proctored Final Examination by Friday of Week 8 from an approved proctor who will send the exam back to the instructor via e-mail or fax. Remember that photo identification is required for a proctored examination.

Academic Honesty:Academic integrity is the foundation of the academic community. Because each student has the primary responsibility for being academically honest, students are advised to read and understand all sections of this policy relating to standards of conduct and academic life. Park University 2006-2007 Undergraduate Catalog Page 87-89Students are required to do their own work and will receive an F in the course if caught cheating. Please do not do that.

Plagiarism:Plagiarism involves the use of quotations without quotation marks, the use of quotations without indication of the source, the use of another's idea without acknowledging the source, the submission of a paper, laboratory report, project, or class assignment (any portion of such) prepared by another person, or incorrect paraphrasing. Park University 2006-2007 Undergraduate Catalog Page 87Students are required to do their own work and will receive a grade of F in the course for plagiarism.

The instructor may excuse absences for valid reasons, but missed work must be made up within the semester/term of enrollment.

Work missed through unexcused absences must also be made up within the semester/term of enrollment, but unexcused absences may carry further penalties.

In the event of two consecutive weeks of unexcused absences in a semester/term of enrollment, the student will be administratively withdrawn, resulting in a grade of "W".

A "Contract for Incomplete" will not be issued to a student who has unexcused or excessive absences recorded for a course.

Students receiving Military Tuition Assistance or Veterans Administration educational benefits must not exceed three unexcused absences in the semester/term of enrollment. Excessive absences will be reported to the appropriate agency and may result in a monetary penalty to the student.

Report of a "F" grade (attendance or academic) resulting from excessive absence for those students who are receiving financial assistance from agencies not mentioned in item 5 above will be reported to the appropriate agency.

ONLINE NOTE: An attendance report of "P" (present) will be recorded for students who have logged in to the Online classroom at least once during each week of the term. Recording of attendance is not equivalent to participation. Participation grades will be assigned by each instructor according to the criteria in the Grading Policy section of the syllabus.

Disability Guidelines:Park University is committed to meeting the needs of all students that meet the criteria for special assistance. These guidelines are designed to supply directions to students concerning the information necessary to accomplish this goal. It is Park University's policy to comply fully with federal and state law, including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, regarding students with disabilities. In the case of any inconsistency between these guidelines and federal and/or state law, the provisions of the law will apply. Additional information concerning Park University's policies and procedures related to disability can be found on the Park University web page: http://www.park.edu/disability .

Additional Information:

BA/MG 261 Core Learning Outcomes

Demonstrate the ability to brief a case.

Describe the relationship between an agent and a principal.

Describe the legal construction of sole proprietorships, corporations, and partnerships.

Grading Rubrics for the Mid-Term Exam, the Final Exam, the Paper, Class Participation, and Case Studies

Grading Rubric for Mid-Term Exam

The Mid-Term will be open-book, open notes.It will be composed of true-false, multiple choice, and short answer questions to test your comprehension of the material.When answering the short answer questions, please use correct grammar and spelling.You should review the core learning outcomes and lectures when preparing for the short answer questions.The test will be comprehensive, focusing on all the material we have covered in weeks 1-4.You can find a list of chapters we cover by week in the syllabus under course schedule.The Mid-Term will cover the chapters from weeks 1 – 4, so be sure to read the chapters we cover in week 4 and complete the week 4 discussion question and case study before taking the Mid-Term.Again, I encourage you to review the lectures before taking the exam.You will need your textbook to take the exam, as you will be asked to describe the issue in 2 cases from the textbook.Please see the Case Studies for weeks 1 and 4 on how to describe the issue in a case.You will have 3 hours to take the Mid-Term.The Mid-Term is worth 25% of your total grade.

Point Distribution

Total possible points:75.Your grade will be reported to you in the number of points you earned.To figure out your letter grade, take the number of points and divide it by 75.For example, 67.5 points divided by 75 = .9 which is an A.

Late policy:You must contact me to open the Mid-Term for you if you are late as it will close at midnight in the Mountain Time Zone.What is late?12:01 in the Mountain Time Zone on Sunday night of week 4 is considered too late to take the exam.You can only take the Mid-Term late with my permission.Without an excuse that I approve of (hospitalization, for example), you will receive no higher than a C if you take it 1 day late and no higher than 50% if you take it 2 days late.You cannot take the Mid-Term late after Tuesday of Week 5 unless you have an excuse.

Grading Rubric for Final Exam

The Final will be closed book and closed notes. It is NOT a take home exam and must be taken using a proctor. You must pass it by 60 % to pass the class. It will be composed of true-false, multiple choice, and short answer questions to test your comprehension of the material.When answering the short answer questions, please use correct grammar and spelling.You should review the core learning outcomes and lectures when preparing for the short answer questions.You will NOT be expected to brief cases or describe the issues from cases as the exam is closed book.The final exam will be comprehensive, covering all the material we have studied in class.It will cover the chapters from weeks 1 – 7.You can find a list of the chapters covered in Self-Check for Week 8 and in the syllabus under course schedule.You will have 2 hours to take the final.It is worth 25% of your total grade.

Point Distribution

Total possible points:75.Your grade will be reported to you in the number of points you earned.To figure out your letter grade, take the number of points and divide it by 75.For example, 67.5 points divided by 75 = .9 which is an A.

Late policy:You can’t take the Final Exam late without instructor permission. Taking the final late could result in a grade of incomplete for the class.

Grading Rubric for Paper

The Paper Topic

The Paper Topic is due in Week 2.Please post it in class in the folder marked Week 2.Here are some suggested topics.You are not limited to the list below- in fact, I encourage you to create your own topic.

How should you approach this paper?Laws are society's attempt to solve its problems. You could explore a topic through research, identify a problem (harassment, crime, scams on the internet, etc), discuss solutions, and evaluate the solutions to see if they are effective. Make suggestions of your own. I want to know what you think. Most topics will follow this format but you are not bound to it.

What am I looking for in a paper? I will grade based on content, organization, readability, and grammatical correctness. Content includes your ideas as well as your research. Organization includes external transitions (section to section) and internal transitions (paragraph to paragraph and sentence to sentence). Readability means how well the paper flows. Avoid wordiness and the passive voice. Don't start your sentences with "it is" or "there are." Grammatical correctness includes spelling and other grammar errors including subject-verb agreement. After you write your paper, leave it in a drawer for a day then read each word out loud. You will find most of your errors.

Basically, write seven pages about a topic you are interested in. Edit your finished draft at least twice (once for organization and once for grammar mistakes).

Your paper should include an outline, seven to ten edited pages with parenthetical references or footnotes, and a list of your sources (a works cited page or a bibliography). Your paper should be double spaced.

Research and Documentation

Sources:Please use at least one Internet source and one hardcopy source (a book or journal article, for example) in your paper.I recommend going to a library and researching your topic there. Find several books on your topic.You also have access to the Park Virtual Library (located in the Webliography under “other resources”).(Students deployed to remote locations like Iraq are not required to use a hardcopy source as they are not able to go to the library.Please note that you are in Iraq in your bibliography so I won’t count off points.)

For writing tips and information on the MLA or APA style, try the Writing Resources category in the Webliography.

Do not plagiarize. Use parenthetical references (MLA or APA style) or footnotes within your paper to document all quotations, minor details (for example, statistics), and opinions that are not yours. However, do not document your own opinions. In the past, several students have copied their entire papers from the Internet. These students failed the class and were reported to the Academic Advisor.

How do I document sources from the Internet?See the Webliography category "Writing Resources" to find information about citing web sources. Warning: Any paper submitted without documentation will receive a grade of zero.

When and how do I turn in this paper?The paper is due by midnight of the Sunday of Week 6 in the Mountain Time Zone. Turn in the paper to the dropbox via an attachment in Rich Text Format or as a Word document. Please check your paper for viruses before you send it.

Important! If the dropbox isn’t working, email me with your paper.Keep electronic file copies of all materials submitted until you receive your grade in this class. E-mail is not 100% reliable. You might want to send a copy of your assignments to your work e-mail address. Without documentation that you sent your paper on time, you won’t receive credit for your work.

Important! This paper must be NEW work. You cannot turn in a paper you submitted in another Park University class.

Point Distribution

Your grade will be reported to you in the number of points you earned.To figure out your letter grade, take the number of points and divide it by 75.For example, 67.5 points divided by 75 = .9 which is an A.

Content45

Organization10

Readability10

Grammatical correctness10

Total possible points:75

Late policy:If work is due at midnight, then 12:01 is late.Late work will receive no higher than a C for 1 day late, no higher than 50% for 2 days late, and a 0 for anything after 2 days.

Grading Rubric for Class Participation

Class participation counts for 15% of your total grade.Each week, you will see a discussion question posted for you to complete by that Sunday.Participation will be graded on content, organization, integration of source materials (citing the textbook, using and citing material from web sites to support your findings if asked), and appearance (grammar and readability).

Peer Reviews (where you provide thoughtful feedback to your classmates with constructive critiques) are also required as part of your class participation grade (except in week 8).

How do I write a Peer Review?Please put “Peer Review” at the top of your posting so I will see it and give you credit for it when I am grading.List your peer’s name.Answer:What was your favorite part of her/his comments?Did he/she cite the textbook if appropriate?Evaluate his/her use of online resources.(Check the website links to see if the links work and are on topic.Did your peer explain how the website was relevant to the discussion topic?)Evaluate the web site:What was your favorite component of the website?Will it be useful in your study of business law?Try to pick someone to review who hasn’t been reviewed yet.

What is good content?A good faith effort to respond to the discussion question with applicable information from the text and the internet if asked.You should present original ideas instead of just agreeing or disagreeing with the discussion question.Web-based research is highly encouraged as it will help improve your content.

Point Distribution

Class participation is worth 45 points toward your total grade.Each week’s class participation will be worth between 5 and 6 points.Class participation will be graded on:

Content50%

Organization10%

Integration of source materials10%

Appearance10%

Peer Review20%= 100% total

Late policy:If work is due at midnight, then 12:01 is late.After 12:00, late work will receive no higher than a C.I will grade it Monday morning.After I grade it, no late work will be graded.

Grading Rubric for Case Studies

The case studies count for 10% of your total grade.Each week, you will see a case study posted for you to complete by that Sunday.The case studies will be graded on content, organization, integration of source materials (citing the textbook, using and citing material from web sites to support your findings if asked), and appearance (grammar and readability).

Point Distribution

The case studies are worth 30 points toward your total grade.Each week’s case study will be worth between 4 and 5 points.There will be no case study in week 8.Case studies will be graded on:

Content70%

Organization10%

Integration of source materials10%

Appearance10% = 100% total

Late policy:If work is due at midnight, then 12:01 is late.After 12:00, late work will receive no higher than a C.I will grade it Monday morning.After I grade it, no late work will be graded.

Rubric

Competency

Exceeds Expectation (3)

Meets Expectation (2)

Does Not Meet Expectation (1)

No Evidence (0)

Synthesis OutcomesDescribe the relationship between agent and principal.

Thoroughly describes the relationship, clearly stating the distinctions between agent and principal.

Describes succinctly and clearly the relation.

Does not clearly describe or distinguish between the two parties.

No response or no pertinent information related to agent-principal relations.

Analysis Outcomes8. Identify areas where the internet has affected the law as it relates to contracting, employment and intellectual property.

Identifies, describes, and provides examples of how law impacts contracting, employment, and intellectual property protection.

Identifies, describes, and provides examples of how law impacts contracting, employment, and intellectual property protection.

Does not clearly identify areas.

No response or no pertinent information related to agent-principal relations.

Evaluation OutcomesIdentify and describe some of the consumer protection laws.Examine the types of business associations.

Identifies and describes many (more than four) consumer protection laws.
States and describes several types of business associations and provides a thorough description of each type.

Identifies and describes at least two areas.
Identifies and discusses two types of business associations.

Does not clearly identify two or more laws.

Does not identify and examine at least two types of business associations.

No response or no pertinent information related to consumer protection laws.
No response or no pertinent information related to business associations.

Terminology OutcomesExamine the types of business associations.Define and give examples of types of intellectual property.

States and describes several types of business associations and provides a thorough description of each type.
Clearly define each type of intellectual property and submit examples.

Identifies and discusses two types of business associations.
Provides a simple, clear definition of two types of intellectual property.

Does not identify and examine at least two types of business associations.

No response or no pertinent information related to business associations.